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97% of People Have No Clue Who These Influential Black Women Are

Despite what authors of history books would like us to believe, Black women have always held a role in our Community that has been equally as impactful as men.

In many cases, women have contributed even more than men. Unfortunately, in Western society, history is made by women but traditionally written by men.

Check out the quiz below to see how many of these facts you know about Black women in politics.

Let’s be honest. These women changed the world. They stopped at nothing to achieve liberation for Black folks.

From our great civilizations in Africa through the middle passage, slavery, Reconstruction, Jim Crow, and in today’s society, Black women have played instrumental roles in fighting for the best interests of Black people.

Before Europeans pillaged African societies, our ancestors lived in societies that were largely matriarchal. For thousands of years we saw the value of our women. As a result, our societies prospered.

Women were the driving force behind producing and processing food, which solidified their rights in all areas of life. From the domestic sphere to the cultural and political domains, women enjoyed high status in African societies.

Then, it happened. Armed with an oppressive form of Christianity which promoted the white man as god, Europeans introduced a patriarchal way of life that was foreign to our African ancestors.

Let’s be clear. Patriarchy and matriarchy are not mirror images of one another. Whereas patriarchy is based on appropriation and violence, African matriarchy was based on fruitfulness, exchange, and redistribution.

In America, everything changed for Black people. The institution of slavery propelled our ancestors into a situation where we began to see a male dominated society as the only way to live. Our family structures changed. We began to model our behavior on that of our oppressors.

Although the role of women has remained important in our communities, when history is written by the dominant society the authors largely ignore the contributions of women- especially Black women.

Black women have been involved with politics at least since 1851, when Sojurner Truth stood and delivered her "Ain't I A Woman" speech, which addressed privileges white women benefited from that Black women did not. This fearless speech came at a time when many Black people were still enslaved.

Despite being ignored due to racial and sexist discrimination, Black women have been persistent in making their voices heard from outside the political realm as a driving force behind grassroots movements.

However, their struggle for involvement in mainstream politics still exists. Despite being more involved in the electoral process than Black men, Black women are still underrepresented in public office.

The women in this quiz were all warriors who put their lives on the line to secure a better life for the entire Black community. They stood up against a system that didn't want them there, and made a way where there previously was no way.

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